A Glimpse at Rikers Island

"The loudest sound in the world is the soft click of prison gates locking behind you. Maybe it's how final it is - the loud slam of the gate, then the quick, gentle click. Then the scary feeling of it all being forever." (page 94)

Poetry Saves the Day

Jacqueline Woodson frequently weaves poetry through her stories. Her poems help to give her stories a richer voice and a more personal touch. Her use of poetry allows her characters to become more dynamic and vital. A good example of her use of poetry can be found in her book "Locomotion" and its companion "Peace Locomotion". These two books chronicle the life of Lonnie C. Motion and his sister Lili who are placed in foster care after the death of their parents in a fire. In "Locomotion", Lonnie turns to writing poetry in an effort to come to terms with his parents' untimely deaths. The story continues in "Peace Locomotion" which is told through a series of letters that Lonnie writes to his sister who has been placed in a separate foster home. He writes them as he says, "to be the rememberer" until they can be together again.

Some of Her Favorite Things!

With twenty-four titles to her name, multi-award winning author Jacqueline Woodson is still as passionate as ever about her writing "because it makes me happy. Even when the words are slow in coming and the story seems all lopsided, writing keeps me happy." Her favorite subject in school was English "and anything where we got to do writing." She loved to read, often reading the same books over again. Among her favorite childhood authors were Virginia Hamilton and Judy Blume. Beloved stories include Oscar Wilde's The Selfish Giant, Hans Christian Anderson's The Little Match Girl and Jon Steptoe's Stevie.

The last book, Stevie, is about the relationship between a young boy and his foster brother....does this ring any bells?

Foster Care Art

An artistic expression of foster care. Taken from San Diego Youth Services.

More from Jeacqueline Woodson

Many of Jacqueline Woodson's stories are very poignant and filled with sorrow. She frequently writes about loss and how to cope with it, whether it be loss of a parent, a best friend, one's freedom, one's identity, or one's home. Some excellent stories that deal with loss include:

I hadn't Meant to Tell You This Lena

Miracle's Boys If You Come Softly


Behind You


For full descriptions of these stories (and more) visit:
http://jacquelinewoodson.com/ya.shtml#

After Tupac & D Foster Book Trailer

A quick trailer that provides readers, before they begin reading the book, with a glimpse of what the story is about.

From one of Utah's most vibrant and attended festivals, Utah's Foster Care Foundation's Chalk Art Festival. This artwork was done in dedication to those children in the system and the families who nurture them.

Many of Woodson's books focus on the foster care system. Although New York doesn't have such a festival as this, it's great to see artwork is being created to bring recognition to the children within the foster care system.